2 October 2013
Geneva, Palais des Nations
Madam Chairperson,
Mr. High Commissioner,
Excellencies,
Delegates,
My delegation thanks Madam Chairperson and the High Commissioner for their commendable leadership and their support for organizing the High Level Segment on Solidarity and Burden-sharing with countries hosting Syrian refugees. We are deeply alarmed by the gravity and deterioration of the ongoing crisis in Syria and therefore Estonia is determined to continue to provide support in the spirit of international burden-sharing, working in coordination with the concerned States, humanitarian organizations and civil society.
We thank the High Commissioner for his useful opening statement yesterday to which we listened very attentively.
Estonia fully aligns itself with the statement made on behalf of the EU and its Member States.
Madam Chairperson,
This year has continued to pose many challenges to the international community, including more complex and mixed nature of humanitarian crises and an increase of protracted situations. The number of people forcibly displaced has reached its highest point in 20 years (more than 45 million); and they find themselves in more complex and mixed displacement situations. We express deep concern over the increased refugees and IDP’s needs in the world. This is especially urgent due to massive crises in Syria and the numerous protracted situations, especially in Africa, which have affected many hundreds of thousands of people; half of whom are children. Those who have suffered as a consequence of disasters and armed conflicts, and especially the victims of protracted refugee situations, continue to need assistance from the international community.
We would like to praise the excellent humanitarian work of the UNHCR staff, who, often by risking their own lives, have been able to organize and deliver assistance. We would like to welcome the UNHCR’s continued efforts to better enable the programmes to be delivered safely and effectively in high-risk environment and hope, that the strategy to strengthen a Culture of Security 2013-2015 will be implemented successfully. Staff safety and security must always remain a high priority in order to ensure the effectiveness of delivery of assistance. We have to keep in mind that we cannot afford to lose the life of even a single life-saver. We pay tribute to those who lost their lives while saving others and express our solidarity with those who are risking their lives today to protect the lives of others.
We are fully aware that the UNHCR’s capacity is stretched to its limit. In this regard, we commend the organization’s commitment to the internal reform process. The innovations and modernization of human resources management, including enhancing the necessary training and e-learning opportunities, will lead to the reinforcement of the capacity of UNHCR’s effective emergency response. In this context we would also like to commend the UNHCR for strengthening the portfolio of the Global Learning Centre in various areas, such as protection, programme and resource management, security, preparedness and response, as well as leadership and coordination.
We welcome the UNHCR’s continued focus on stronger partnerships and on leadership and accountability under the guidance of the Emergency Relief Coordinator in order to strengthen the implementation of the Transformative Agenda and improve coordination in the refugee emergencies. We believe that this will help to enhance the overall humanitarian response across the UN system.
Madam Chairperson,
Estonia, among many other countries, has focused on helping those who have been forced to flee from their homes and on protecting the most vulnerable members of society – women and children. Unfortunately the problem of sexual and gender-based violence is growing and every day millions of refugees face violence, rape and terror. We note with serious concern that sexual violence has been used to force internal and cross-border displacement in many places around the world and that women and children are targeted both inside and outside refugee and IDP’s camps and settlements. We commend the UNHCR for placing particular emphasis on strengthening its response in emergencies by improving knowledge management, monitoring and evaluation of the SGBV data. We highly appreciate the particular investment in this regard in the Syrian Arab Republic and Mali. Estonia also confirms its commitment to ending impunity and fighting sexual violence through its financial contributions in this field.
We would like to commend the UNHCR for its activities in responding to considerable challenges in the area of child protection. We welcome the launch of the global framework for the protection of children and innovative development of child protection e-learning programmes for the staff members. We believe that these initiatives and related trainings will contribute to increase the child-protection capacity of the UNHCR.
Finally,
We commend the increased effectiveness of the UNHCR in fulfilling its important humanitarian mission. Estonia has supported the work of the UNHCR for more than a decade and will continue to support its operations and programs today and in the future.
Thank you, Madam Chairperson!